Dallas was also the defending Super Bowl XII champion, and finished the 1978 regular season with a 12–4 record, and posted playoff victories over the Atlanta Falcons and the Los Angeles Rams.
Representatives from Miami touted a proposed $8–15 million stadium improvement project, a plan to erect temporary bleachers to increase capacity to nearly 80,000 spectators, and offered the facility for low rent.
Early favorite[13] Houston (Rice Stadium) reportedly fell out of favor with owners when it was revealed that birds were found in the showers of the Vikings training facility during Super Bowl VIII.
Tight end Randy Grossman, who replaced injured starter Bennie Cunningham for most of the season, also was a big factor, recording 37 receptions for 448 yards and a touchdown.
Dungy led the team with 6 interceptions, while the rest of the secondary, defensive backs Mel Blount, Donnie Shell, and Ron Johnson, combined for 11.
On special teams, rookie defensive back Larry Anderson ranked second in the NFL with 37 kickoff returns for 930 yards and a touchdown.
Wide receivers Drew Pearson and Tony Hill provided the deep passing threats, combining for 90 receptions, 1,537 yards, and 7 touchdowns.
Pro Bowl linemen Ed "Too Tall" Jones, Harvey Martin, and Randy White anchored the line, leading the league with 58 sacks, while linebackers Bob Breunig, D. D. Lewis and Thomas "Hollywood" Henderson provided solid support.
Their secondary, led by safeties Cliff Harris and Charlie Waters, along with cornerbacks Benny Barnes and Aaron Kyle, combined for 16 interceptions.
But under backup quarterback Danny White, Dallas rallied back in the second half with two touchdowns, while their defense intercepted two passes from Steve Bartkowski and forced a turnover on downs on their own 35-yard line late in the fourth quarter as Atlanta was driving for a potential tying score, and the team went on to win 27–20.
[19] In the following week, any doubts about the Cowboys due to their struggle to win against the Falcons were quickly put to rest as they shut out the 12–4 Los Angeles Rams 28–0, holding them to just 277 total yards and forcing 7 turnovers.
[22] Although the Super Bowl had grown into America's biggest one-day sporting event by this point, many believe the 13th edition began the game's evolution to unofficial national holiday and cross-cultural phenomenon.
The Steelers' four-point eventual margin of victory meant the Las Vegas sportsbooks lost the vast majority of wagers on the game.
[23] The game was televised in the United States by NBC, with Curt Gowdy handling play-by-play and sharing the booth with color commentators John Brodie and Merlin Olsen.
Also taking part in NBC's coverage were Bryant Gumbel, Mike Adamle (who also covered the Vince Lombardi Trophy presentation ceremony), Donna De Varona, and recently retired former Minnesota Vikings quarterback Fran Tarkenton.
Enberg had essentially succeeded Gowdy as NBC's lead NFL play-by-play announcer in the 1978 regular season, and network producers didn't decide until nearly the last minute which man would get the Super Bowl call.
A technical glitch led to Fleming and Cope's commentary going out over NBC's television broadcast in place of the network's own audio during the coin toss ceremony.
In a sign of the game's growing cultural importance, NBC was the first network to make strategic use of the Super Bowl lead-out program, heavily promoting the series premiere of Brothers and Sisters.
The coin toss ceremony featured Pro Football Hall of Famer and longtime Chicago Bears owner/head coach George Halas, who was driven onto the field in a 1920 automobile to commemorate the 1920 founding of the NFL.
On their next drive, the Cowboys responded by advancing to the Steelers' 39-yard line, with quarterback Roger Staubach completing a 27-yard pass to wide receiver Butch Johnson.
The Cowboys capitalized on the turnover three plays later with Staubach completing a 39-yard scoring strike to wide receiver Tony Hill, tying the game, 7–7, as the first quarter ended.
On third down, defensive tackle Joe Greene sacked Staubach, forcing a fumble that bounced through the hands of Furness, and was recovered by Cowboys guard Tom Rafferty at the Dallas 13-yard line.
Jones sacked Harris for an 8-yard loss on the next play, but a subsequent holding penalty on Henderson gave Pittsburgh a first down at the Dallas 25-yard line.
Following an illegal use of hands penalty on Steelers guard Gerry Mullins, Bradshaw completed two passes to Swann for a total gain of 50 yards, moving the ball to the 16-yard line with 40 seconds left in the half.
Then with just 26 seconds left, Bradshaw completed a 7-yard touchdown pass to running back Rocky Bleier, giving the Steelers a 21–14 lead at halftime and would not trail again for the rest of the game.
[27] Though Smith played 16 years in the league and is now enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, he is perhaps best known for this dropped touchdown, particularly in a championship game that was ultimately decided by four points.
Bradshaw then attempted a deep pass to Swann, who collided with cornerback Benny Barnes and fell to the ground as the ball rolled incomplete.
Replays showed that it could have been incidental contact, as Swann seemed to run into Barnes, but the penalty nonetheless gave Pittsburgh a new set of downs at Dallas' 23-yard line.
On the ensuing kickoff, video showed that Gerela slipped when trying to plant his foot, causing him to squib the ball, which bounced to Cowboys defensive tackle Randy White at the Dallas 24-yard line.
Remarkably, Winston was not even in the middle of the scrum when the fumble first occurred; he was standing by several teammates and decided to join the battle for the ball before the officials intervened.